


Living Until Death

by ElliAndKate



Category: The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Genre: F/M, Idk what to tag this as, Revolutionary War, i might just add tags later, just read it already, we'll see where this goes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-03
Updated: 2020-04-03
Packaged: 2021-03-01 08:00:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23468035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElliAndKate/pseuds/ElliAndKate
Summary: Many know about the year that Christmas was almost cancelled. Or about where holidays come from. But who were the rulers of the holidays before they gained their crown? What about a certain Pumpkin King? Jack Skellington, a former Hessian soldier, tries to find what his purpose is in the town of Louisville, Kentucky. He'll have to gain the trust of those weary from the American Revolution and survive the... dangerous tasks given to him as the lab assistant of Dr. Finkelstein. At least he has the doctor's daughter, Sally, to help him along the way.
Relationships: Sally/Jack Skellington
Kudos: 8





	Living Until Death

He noticed the blood seeping through his coat a second before the pain. As soon as his nerves got off their adrenaline rush, the feeling consumed all of the boy's thoughts and he fell to the ground. Go to Kentucky to help Captain McKee and the Indians, they said. It'll be easy, they said. And now, Johann Schreck was laying on the battlefield with a bullet in his abdomen. He wasn't afraid, but rather determined. The soldier didn't want to die in a war he didn't want to fight. While questions filled his brain, one thought rose to the surface of his dangling consciousness: "Move."

Inch by inch, Johann pulled himself out of the battlefield. He was in his own little world as the fighting ensued around him. When he thought he was out of the way, he slowly propped himself on the trunk of a tree and threw his hat off beside him. His focus turned to his breathing. Inhale, exhale, inhale exhale. Each breath sent a spark of pain flowing through him, but as long as he was breathing, he wasn't dead. He finally let the thoughts creep into his mind that were nagging him. How did he get here? Was this the end? Would anyone care?

If he was going to have any chance at life, he needed to act fast. Pulling off his coat was not going to happen, so Johann tried to at least see how bad the wound was, but his shaking and slippery hands could barely grasp the buttons on his shirt. He leaned his head back on the tree in anguish as specks began to dot his eyes. What was the point in sticking out this long? The only hope was if someone found him, but even then, there was just a small chance that he would survive. Minutes seemed like days as Johann sunk lower and lower on the tree until he could see the outline of a girl. As his eyes shut, he could feel himself being lifted off of the ground.

As Johann woke up, his brain started before his body did, and it immediately began asking millions of questions, with most of them having to do with if he was truly still alive or if this was heaven. Finally, he opened his eyes to see that he was not in somewhere mystical, but rather in what looked like a small basement. There were tables filled with various medical and scientific tools from graduated cylinders to amputation knives, and lining the walls were cabinets with closed jars and containers.

Johann tried to sit up on the wooden bed he was laying on, but gave up when his abdomen angrily reminded him that he was still wounded. There weren't such intense throbs now; he felt more sore than in pain. Looking down at the wound, Johann could see that it had been wrapped up and didn't seem to be bleeding anymore.

All he could do now was wait until someone came to him, so that's what he did. Johann heard a door opening and the sound of wheels behind him. The sound revealed itself as an old man in a lab coat by moving into the boy's sight. "Welcome back to life," the balding man croaked. "Luckily the bullet wasn't deep in your skin. It was as simple as pulling a brain apart." He was holding Johann's hat and uniform on his lap, and he placed them on the table beside the bed. Just as the boy was about to speak, a knock could be heard at the door. "Come in," the doctor said.

As the visitor entered and walked towards the bed, Johann noticed that it was a young woman with ginger hair. She was holding a basket in one hand that seemed to be filled with various plant life, most of which the soldier had only seen during his time in the colonies. "I was getting some more vanilia," she said, as if she needed to explain why she had left. The old man reprimanded her: "You should have been back by now." He turned his attention back to Johann, just realizing that he was still here."This is my daughter, Sally. She's going through a rebellious phase from being around the useless comotion right now. You should know all about that, right? Mister?" The question came so fast that the young man didn't realize it was his turn to answer until he saw the stares of both the doctor and his daughter.

"Johann Schreck, sir," he replied, keeping a confident tone despite the confusing situation he was in. Why would a settler have saved a Hessian who was fighting against them? "I'm not sure how I can repay you for healing me." With his response, the doctor slightly smiled. Sally saw this as her cue to leave, and promptly did so, leaving her basket on one of the counters. "Thankfully, I have a way you can help. As I'm getting older, I can't work on my... projects as easily as I used to. Sally's head is too far in the clouds to be of any use, and there is no one who wants to be my lab assistant. The Indians you were helping lost their chief, and McKee along with the rest of the British are long gone. I can offer you an unpaid position as my lab assistant, or the may-"

"I'll do it."

Johann let out a sigh of relief that he hadn't realized he was holding as he gave his answer. He had a chance to avoid being a prisoner of war and start a new life wherever he was. The boy had wanted to go into the science field himself, but had been forced into the military in his home state of Hesse-Cassel. If he'd have to desert to achieve that, he'd do it in a heartbeat. The doctor looked shocked for a mere second but then resumed his normally cranky expression. "It's settled then. We'll discuss the specifics when you've fully healed, You may call me Doctor Finkelstein." Finding that he had nothing else to say, Finkelstein left Johann to himself.

Not more than 20 minutes later, Johann heard the door opening again. He was surprised when his ears picked up on footsteps instead of Doctor Finkelstein's wheelchair. A wave of panic washed over him. Had someone from the army figured out he was here? His fears were doffed when the shadow revealed herself to be Sally. She all but ran over to the basket and began to refill some of the jars in the cabinets. As she worked, the girl seemed to avoid making eye contact with Johann if not ignoring him completely. For a few minutes, an awkward silence occupied the room until he spoke up, "Where am I?"

Johann had forgotten to ask the question while the doctor was there, and Sally didn't seem as unruly as her father depicted her to be. She seemed startled for a second, but turned towards, "Louisville, Kentucky." Sally immediately went back to her task. A few minutes later, she had put all of the ingredients away. Before leaving, she said, "I'm sorry you have to stay here; it was the only thing I could think of to get my father to help."

Johann shook his head with a smile, "I think this may end up being the best thing to happen to me yet."

"That's until the town citizens realize you were an enemy. You'll have to try to blend in."

"I don't think I can stay very inconspicuous. As soon as they hear my name, my cover will be blown."

The girl thought for a moment, "What if you weren't Johann, but was someone else? Someone the people could trust."

His eyes lit up. "That's a brilliant idea! Instead of being Herr Schreck, I could be... Hm..." His eyes darted around the room, desperate for any type of cue as to hat his new name should be. His eyes landed on what looked like skeleton remains. "John Skell...ington?"

"I like it." Sally smiled. "If you wanted to be even more cautious, you could use the nickname Jack."

The name seemed to fit like a glove. For all anyone knew, Johann had died after being shot on the battlefield. Jack Skellington was just someone who had moved to Louisville to get a better life.

And that new life would be a wild ride.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! So I've been working on this for a while, but have never been able to post it. As the (terribly written) summary says, this takes place during Jack's life during this Revolutionary War. Although this is an AU, I'm trying to be as historically accurate as possible (except for the dialogue), so if I got anything wrong, please tell me! Let's get this book started!
> 
> \- Kate


End file.
